The Children of Doreen Espinosa
Real Names: Anamarie Hudson and Martha Carota Case: Lost Siblings Location: Salinas, California Date: 1951 Ric Laws.jpg Bryan Laws.jpg Debra Jaynes.jpg Robert Henderson.jpg Case Details: When Doreen Espinosa was just three-years-old, her father abandoned her family. By the time she was a young woman, she had been moved from one relative to another. She longed for a stable, happy life. When she became pregnant in the fall of 1952, the man she was seeing walked out on her. She was devastated and feared that she would be thrown out of her home. After that, however, she began dating Francis Laws. She was able to hide her pregnancy from him and did not tell him that on July 25, 1953, she gave birth to a baby girl and immediately gave her up for adoption. Four months later, in November of 1953, she and Francis were married in Salinas, California. Over the next few years, she and Francis had three sons: Ric, Mike, and Bryan. In 1962, the marriage ended. Sadly, Doreen was on her own again. She had no idea that her "secret" daughter Debra Jaynes knew who she was and would one day start looking for her. When she was in her early twenties, Debra began searching for her mother. Debra made a habit of asking almost anyone she met if they knew her birth mother Doreen. Finally, a co-worker's aunt, Tillie Ramirez, told Debra that she had known Doreen for years. Tillie revealed to Debra that she was not the only daughter of Doreen's and that Doreen had given another daughter up for adoption in 1951. Within a few months, Debra had met her mother and three half-brothers. She and Ric had an especially close bond. Debra asked her mother about her sister, but Doreen claimed that Tillie was wrong. When Debra asked about her birth father, Doreen was evasive. She claimed that she couldn't remember him, but Debra felt that she was lying. In February of 1997, Doreen Laws passed away. She never admitted the existence of another child and may have hoped that her secrets would go with her to the grave. Ironically, her death would reveal a new secret. When a neighbor called 911 to report Doreen's death, the operator who took the call was Edie Henderson. Edie's husband Robert was another of Doreen's secrets; she had given him up for adoption as well. For years, Robert had known that "Doreen Laws" was the name of his birth mother, but he did not want to contact her, for fear of rejection. Sadly for Robert, it was now too late. However, he was happy to reunite with his siblings, especially Bryan, as they had already known each other since elementary school. By the time Robert had reunited with his half-siblings, another bombshell was dropped: Doreen had another secret child. Robert's adoptive mother told him that Doreen had given birth to another daughter in 1963 who had also been given up for adoption. Robert and the newest sister had been conceived after Doreen and Francis had divorced. Ric believes that Doreen's changes in weight allowed her to have more children without anyone even noticing. Doreen's children were astounded; their mother apparently had a total of seven children. She had two daughters before she married, three sons with Francis Laws, and another son and daughter after her divorce. Now, Doreen's children are searching for two remaining siblings: Doreen's daughter born in 1951 and the other daughter born in 1963. Extra Notes: This segment was featured as part of the March 29, 1998 episode. Martha with siblings.jpg|Martha (left) reunited with her siblings Anamarie hudson.jpg|Anamarie Hudson Results: Solved. After the segment was filmed, the daughter born in 1951, Martha Carota, was finally located in Aptos, California. Martha was reunited with her siblings in January of 1998. In June of 1998, an independent researcher helped Doreen's children locate the daughter who was born in November of 1963. Anamarie Hudson had grown up in Salinas, California, not far from her three half-brothers. Shortly thereafter, Anamarie was reunited with her siblings. However, Doreen's children were shocked to discover that Doreen had given birth to an eighth child. In 2000, after determining the identity of Martha's father, the Laws learned through Martha's adoption papers about an older brother born in 1950. Richard Gonzales, the oldest brother, was located by the same investigator that found Anamarie. There was a second reunion filmed by Unsolved Mysteries, but the segment never aired. Unfortunately, Richard has since passed away, but not before all of Doreen's children met and formed a bond. Links: * Family Mystery Finding Happy Ending * Doreen Espinosa on WikiTree * Doreen Espinosa at Find a Grave ---- Category:California Category:1951 Category:1953 Category:1963 Category:Lost Loves Category:Adoption Cases Category:Solved